Why did author Ian Fleming choose the name James Bond?

Answer 1

At the time the James Bond books were written by Ian Fleming, it was fairly common in English speaking countries for people (particularly males) to introduce themselves, and be called by their last names, just as people will sometimes call each other primarily by their last names today.

When he added "James Bond" after his introduction by his last name, he was merely clarifying, and perhaps being slightly socially aggressive and dynamic.

Answer 2

"I wanted the simplest, dullest, plainest-sounding name I could think of. James Bond seemed perfect." - Ian Fleming

He found it sitting on his bookshelf in the author of a book entitled "Bird's Of The West Indies." The rest is history!

l read that he got the actual name"Bond" from the side of a panel truck and used this because, "l wanted the simplest, dullest......(etc).

Answer 3

Well, James Bond answers that way to emphasize the personality behind the name. Its like saying my name is Obama, Back Obama. Its like in case you dont know Obama, you should know Barack Obama. No chance for mistaking identity.

Also, it's very common to call people by their last name in the UK, especially in schools and clubs. (Think Potter, Granger, et al.) So he's giving you the name he expects you to use, then clarifying it.

Answer 4

Actually there is some speculations, many believe Bond was based upon Fleming himself, who like Bond was a graduate of Eton. Many believe that Bond was based upon Sidney Reilly. Reilly was a Jewish Russian-born adventurer and secret agent employed by Scotland Yard, the British Secret Service Bureau and later the early version of the Secret Intelligence Service, SIS also known as MI6. He has supposedly spied for at least four different countries. Reilly's notoriety came from his failed attempt to overthrow the Bolshevik government during 1918.

However, Fleming was the personal assistant to the Director of British Naval Intelligence, an Admiral Godfrey. He was also responsible for creating a commando unit named

30 Assault Unit that was responsible for obtaining secret Nazi documents from behind enemy lines ahead of the allied armies liberating Europe. During the war, he worked with many allied spies and and as a result, Bond was most likely a combination of many of these men. Though he gave Bond his own personal tastes in food, drink, leisure activities, clothes, etc., and used a combination of his own features and those of his older brother Peter to give to Bond (his brother looked somewhat like Hoagy Carmichael - who he referenced in his novels), the professional side of his creation came from real spies.

Answer 5

Much of Bond's personality was based on people Ian met in the war. He was in Naval Intelligence so met many real life "spy"types. He told his freinds he wanted to write a spy novel and did so in 2 months (his first) It was a big success leading to the others He claimed afterwards that he wrote the novel to distract himself from his forthcoming wedding to the pregnant Charteris,and called the work his "dreadful oafish opus".His manuscript was typed in London by Joan Howe, (mother of travel writer Rory MacLean) and Fleming's red-haired secretary at The Timeson whom the character Miss Moneypenny was partially based.Clare Blanchard, a former girlfriend, advised him not to publish the book, or at least to do so under a pseudonym.

During Casino Royale's final draft stages, Fleming allowed his friend William Plomer to see a copy, and remarked "so far as I can see the element of suspense is completely absent" Despite this, Plomer thought the book had sufficient promise and sent a copy to the publishing house Jonathan Cape. At first, they were unenthusiastic about the novel, but Fleming's brother Peter, whose books they managed, persuaded the company to publish it.[On 13 April 1953 Casino Royale was released in the UK in hardcover, with a cover designed by Fleming. It was a success and three print runs were needed to cope with the demand.

The novel centres on the exploits of James Bond, an officer in the Secret Intelligence Service, commonly known as MI6. Bond was also known by his code number, 007, and was a commander in the Royal Naval Reserve. Fleming took the name for his character from that of the American ornithologist James Bond, an expert on Caribbean birds and author of the definitive field guide Birds of the West Indies. Fleming, himself a keen birdwatcher,[ had a copy of Bond's guide, and later told the ornithologist's wife, "It struck me that this brief, unromantic, Anglo-Saxon and yet very masculine name was just what I needed, and so a second James Bond was born".In a 1962 interview in The New Yorker, he further explained: "When I wrote the first one in 1953, I wanted Bond to be an extremely dull, uninteresting man to whom things happened; I wanted him to be a blunt instrument ... when I was casting around for a name for my protagonist I thought by God, [James Bond] is the dullest name I ever heard."

Fleming's sketch showing his concept of the James Bond character.

Fleming based his creation on individuals he met during his time in the Naval Intelligence Division, and admitted that Bond "was a compound of all the secret agents and commando types I met during the war

Answer 6

The real James Bond wrote a book, a field guide to the birds of Jamaica.

Ian Fleming lived in Jamaica, liked the name, and took it for his famous character.

Answer 7

Ian Fleming chose the name from an author who wrote about birds in the Caribbean.